What is happening in bonus schemes: part 2 - Survey findings

Our research project provides a unique insight into the lessons that HR and reward specialists feel their organisations have learnt in the course of introducing and running bonuses schemes.

As in all our previous surveys, perhaps the most fascinating and valuable outcomes are the practical comments and suggestions about the design of bonus schemes made by respondents, which we reproduce in full. A considerable number of respondents produced an avalanche of practical ideas on the key ingredients shaping success. This refreshingly clear guidance is, without doubt, the most fascinating and valuable outcome of our survey. Their replies offer an unrivalled resource for those interested and involved in the use of bonus schemes, providing you with a rich source of practical advice and guidance. When putting together a new or revised bonus scheme, we reckon you could do a lot worse than apply some of these techniques to give your plan the edge.

The survey examines:

• incidence of major types of bonus scheme
• objectives of bonus schemes
• key features and trends in design - how payments are allocated to staff, frequency of payments, use of formulae and performance measures/criteria
• size of payments
• employers' views on the effectiveness of their bonus schemes
• lessons learnt and advice on introduction and operation.

A summary of the the key findings was published in issue three of The Reward Quarter - download it from the 'Quarterly magazine' section of e-reward.co.uk.

Download a seven-page summary of the survey results in PDF format by clicking here

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